Speciality Gases

US demand to grow 3.6% annually through 2013
Demand for specialty gases in the US is forecast to expand 3.6 percent per annum through 2013 to $3.4 billion. High purity atmospheric gases and noble gases will lead demand growth, which will be driven primarily by gains in manufacturing and health care. Additionally, growth will  be driven by new or emerging applications in areas such as food & beverage processing and packaging, medical research and applications, analytical instrumentation, and others. The electronics industry, an important specialty gas market, will remain so, though its growth prospects have been severely reduced. High purity atmospheric gases, noble gases and carbon gases will continue to dominate and account for two thirds of specialty gas demand in 2013.

Health care applications will grow most rapidly
The health care industry is a large user of specialty gases. Atmospheric gases, mostly oxygen, will comprise nearly half of this market in 2013. Oxygen for  institutional and home respiratory therapies will lead growth, though this will be limited by increased use of portable generators or concentrators. Other important medical applications for specialty gases include sterilization, analytical and laboratory uses, operation of imaging equipment and anaesthesia. Aside from oxygen, the key gases used by the medical community include helium, nitrous oxide, ethylene oxide and others. The aging population will fuel moderate growth in institutional specialty gas demand, more rapid growth in home
health therapies.

Manufacturing market to remain dominant
Manufacturing activity (excluding electronics) in the US will continue to dominate the market for specialty gases and account for 44 percent of demand in 2013. The chemicals industry is the largest manufacturing market for specialty gases. Lighting and laser markets for specialty gases will continue to grow, but will be constrained by the emergence of LEDs and diode lasers. Niche applications for specialty gases are numerous across the entire manufacturing spectrum and new applications and technologies will contribute to underlying demand in the future.

Photovoltaics to support a sagging electronics market
The electronics industry in the US is, and will remain, a significant market for specialty gases. However, its importance as a growth market for specialty gases has faded, primarily as the result of outsourced production to other nations, mainly in the Asia/Pacific rim. The US electronics industry’s output has flattened or declined in recent years, a trend that  ill result in stagnant or weakening specialty gas demand, and market increases in this area will be the result of price escalation rather than higher volume. One bright spot in this sector is the potential increase in the production of products and materials used for photovoltaic applications and plasma display panels, which will help soften market declines to the sector.

INTRODUCTION                       
       
     I.  EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
    
     II. MARKET ENVIRONMENT
        General
        Macroeconomic Outlook
        Demographic Trends
        Manufacturing Outlook
        Environmental & Regulatory Issues
          Government Agencies & Regulations
           Occupational Safety and Health Administration
           Department of Transportation
           Environmental Protection Agency
           Other
          Trade Organizations
           Compressed Gas Association
           National Fire Protection Association
           Gases and Welding Distributors Association
        Historical Market Trends
        Pricing Trends
        International Markets & Foreign Trade
       
     III. PRODUCTS
        General
        High Purity Atmospheric Gases
          Nitrogen
          Oxygen
        Noble Gases
          Helium
          Argon
          Xenon
          Krypton
          Neon
        Carbon Gases
          Carbon Dioxide
          Carbon Monoxide
          Methane
          Other
        Halogen Gases
          Fluorine Gases
          Chlorine Gases
          Bromine Gases
        Other Specialty Gases
          High Purity Hydrogen
          Zero Air
          Nitrous Oxide
          Silane
          All Other Gases
         
     IV. MARKETS & APPLICATIONS
        General
        Markets
          Manufacturing
           Chemical Processing
           Lasers
           Lighting
           Other Manufacturing Markets
          Electronics
           Electronic Components Industry Outlook
           Specialty Gas Demand
           Suppliers
          Health Care
           National Health Expenditures
           Specialty Gas Demand
           Suppliers
          Government/Academia
           Research Spending Outlook
           Specialty Gas Demand
           Suppliers
          Other
        Applications
          Inert Atmosphere & Purge Gases
          Analytical Gases
          Other Applications


 V.  INDUSTRY STRUCTURE
        General
        Market Share
        Competitive Strategies
        Acquisitions & Divestitures
        Cooperative Agreements
        Research & Development
        Manufacturing
          Air Separation
          Other Specialty Gas Production Methods
        Marketing
        Distribution

        Company Profiles
          Advanced Gas Technologies
          Advanced Specialty Gases Incorporated
          Air Products and Chemicals Incorporated
          Airgas Incorporated
          American Air Liquide Holdings, see L'Air Liquide      
          AmeriGas Partners, see UGI                 
          Aqua Lung Group, see L'Air Liquide             
          DCP Midstream Partners LP
          DuPont (EI) de Nemours
          Honeywell International Incorporated
          Inweld Corporation
          L'Air Liquide SA
          LifeGas, see Linde                     
          Linde Group
          Linweld Incorporated, see Taiyo Nippon Sanso        
          Maine Oxy-Acetylene Supply Company
          Matheson Tri-Gas, see Taiyo Nippon Sanso          
          Mills Welding Supply, see Praxair              
          Mitsui Chemicals Incorporated
          Norco Incorporated
          NorLab, see Norco                      
          Nova Gas Technologies Incorporated
          Ozark Fluorine Specialties, see TOXCO   
          Praxair Incorporated
          Renewable Energy Corporation ASA
          Scott Specialty Gases, see L'Air Liquide          
          Spec-Air Specialty Gases, see Maine Oxy-Acetylene Supply  
          Spectra Gases, see Linde                  
          Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation
          3M Company
          TOXCO Incorporated
          UGI Corporation
          Voltaix Incorporated
          Welsco Incorporated


LIST OF TABLES
                   
        SECTION I -- EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
        Summary Table
       
        SECTION II -- MARKET ENVIRONMENT
      1  Macroeconomic Indicators
      2  Population & Households
      3  Manufacturers' Shipments
      4  Specialty Gas Market, 1998-2008
      5  Specialty Gas Prices
      6  US Specialty Gas Foreign Trade

        SECTION III -- PRODUCTS
      1  Specialty Gas Demand by Type
      2  High Purity Atmospheric Gas Demand by Type & Market
      3  High Purity Nitrogen Demand
      4  High Purity Oxygen Demand
      5  Noble Gas Demand by Type & Market
      6  Helium Demand
      7  High Purity Argon Demand
      8  Xenon Demand
      9  Krypton Demand
     10  Neon Demand
     11  Carbon Gas Demand by Type & Market
     12  High Purity Carbon Dioxide Demand
     13  Carbon Monoxide Demand
     14  Methane Demand
     15  Other Carbon Gases Demand
     16  Halogen Gas Demand by Type & Market
     17  Fluorine Gases Demand by Type & Market
     18  Chlorine Gases Demand by Type & Market
     19  Bromine Gases Demand by Type & Market
     20  Other Specialty Gases Demand by Type & Market
     21  High Purity Hydrogen Demand
     22  Zero Air Demand
     23  Nitrous Oxide Demand
     24  Silane Gases Demand by Type
     25  All Other Specialty Gases Demand

        SECTION IV -- MARKETS & APPLICATIONS
      1  Specialty Gas Demand by Market
      2  Manufacturing Market for Specialty Gases
      3  Chemical Product Shipments
      4  Chemical Processing Market for Specialty Gases
          by Application & Type
      5  Laser Systems & Equipment Supply & Demand
      6  Laser Market for Specialty Gases
      7  Lamps Supply & Demand
      8  Lighting Market for Specialty Gases
      9  Other Manufacturing Markets for Specialty Gases
     10  US Electronic Component Shipments
     11  Electronics Market for Specialty Gases
     12  Blanketing/Atmosphere Gas Demand in Electronics
     13  Etching & Cleaning Gas Demand in Electronics
     14  Precursor Gas Demand in Electronics
     15  Dopant Gas Demand in Electronics
     16  Other Electronics Gas Demand
     17  National Health Expenditures
     18  Health Care Market for Specialty Gases by Application & Type
     19  Analytical & Laboratory Specialty Gas Demand
     20  Health Care Demand for Sterilant Gases
     21  Other Health Care Specialty Gas Demand
     22  Research Spending
     23  Government/Academia Market for Specialty Gases
     24  Other Markets for Specialty Gases
     25  Specialty Gas Demand by Application
     26  Inert Atmosphere & Purge Gases Demand
     27  Analytical Specialty Gases Demand by Market & Application
     28  Other Applications for Specialty Gases

        SECTION V -- INDUSTRY STRUCTURE
      1  Specialty Gas Sales by Company, 2008
      2  Selected Acquisitions & Divestitures
      3  Selected Cooperative Agreements
       

LIST OF CHARTS
                     
        SECTION II -- MARKET ENVIRONMENT
      1  Specialty Gas Market, 1998-2008

        SECTION III -- PRODUCTS                
      1  Specialty Gas Demand by Type, 2008

        SECTION IV -- MARKETS & APPLICATIONS
      1  Specialty Gas Demand by Market, 2008

        SECTION V -- INDUSTRY STRUCTURE
      1  US Specialty Gas Market Share, 2008